Douglas Booth has spoken about working with Michelle Keegan for the first time on ITV's new drama series The Blame, sharing what surprised him most about the actress. Keegan plays DI Emma Crane, a detective investigating the murder of a teenage skater, while Booth plays her colleague and on-screen love interest, DI Tom Radley.
Booth praises Keegan's professionalism
Speaking to The Metro, Booth said he had not met Keegan previously but knew she was "famously one of the nicest people in the business". He added: "She's so good. It helps any job you do if you get on really well with your co-star."
"But she's also like superwoman, she's just had a baby. Incredible mum, incredible professional," he said.
Surprise at her career choices
Asked if she could be the "next Sheridan Smith", described by the newspaper as "the Queen of British TV", Booth shared what surprised him about Keegan's career so far. "What surprised me is that she actually hasn't been in that much stuff because she's been doing it for so long. But she's just in really good things," he added.
Booth also said he witnessed "first-hand" how loved she is by the crew and fans when out and about. "She is a national sweetheart," he continued, adding that she is "relatable".
Keegan on balancing work and motherhood
Keegan rose to fame in Coronation Street and has since appeared in shows including Our Girl, Brassic and Fool Me Once. In her private life, she is married to former The Only Way Is Essex star Mark Wright, with whom she has a one-year-old daughter named Palma.
Speaking to Grazia, the actress opened up about juggling long filming days with being a mum. "Listen, I think I went in blinded. Obviously I agreed to the role before I had Palma, because I was so excited by it. I think you just believe that you're going to be fine," she shared.
"And of course I can do it, loads of women work full-time and are a mum. But it is hard. It's really hard," she said, adding: "I had long days and had to go home and learn a lot of lines for the next day and be fresh, but still look after the baby at night when she was up. Luckily Mark's brilliant, he's a great partner and he's such a good dad as well."
Keegan and Wright married at St Mary's Church in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, in 2015. Opening up about a shift in their marriage in 2024, she joked they had become "boring", telling Closer Magazine: "I am happy to have a night on the sofa with our dogs watching TV and relaxing, but we do still like getting dressed up and go out for dinner."
"In the old days we'd go out for dinner and drinks until the early hours. But now after dinner, I'll look at my watch and say, 'It's 9.30pm, we'd better get back home for bedtime'. It's a bit more boring now," she added. The Blame continues tonight at 9pm on ITV and ITVX.
